According to the dictionary, "hang" can also be used as a noun, but I don't think it is the right word to use in this scenario. Should I use "hanging" instead, e.g., this software bug may cause two problems to this computer, crash or hanging? It also sounds weird to me.

In general, if a verb doesn't have a direct corresponding noun, what should I do if I have to use a noun to present the same meaning.

4 Answers
4

As a matter of fact the title of the wikipedia article "Freeze_(Computing)" is actually... "Hang" and starts like this

"In computing, a hang or freeze occurs
when either a single computer program
or the whole system ceases to respond
to inputs."

(emphasis is mine)

Personally I would prefer to use a "hang" for a server (typically in the case when a request is sent and one waits indefinitely for the answer) whereas the "freeze" conjures up the idea of an unresponsive GUI (when for instance moving the mouse does not move the pointer) and would therefore preferably apply to a desktop.

I've been a computer programmer for ten years, and I've never heard anyone use "hang" as a noun. Maybe as a joke: "This computer has a bit of the hang". Hey, thanks - I might use that!
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wlangstrothMar 15 '11 at 3:50

In at least some technical communities, a hang is perfectly standard, and probably the correct term to use. Try googling, for example, "fixing a hang" or "server hang":

We will go over the basic debugging of a server hang in a future post.

If you don’t like that noun usage, then reworking it to use a verb is probably the best option, if there’s a reasonably non-clunky way to do so.

I’d be rather wary of substituting other nouns (freezes, crashes, etc.), depending of course on context. As with all technical and semi-technical terms, there may be subtle distinctions between their precise meanings, which it’s important to respect. I don’t know what the usage is now, but at least on Macs in the early 90’s, if I remember right, a freeze and a hang were two specific types of crash — to a lay reader they sounded like synonyms, but when the technical details mattered, they weren’t quite interchangeable.

How about freeze or halt? As to your general question, I would look around for other word stems, or just reword. (In this particular case, I might write, "the software bug might cause the computer to crash or hang".)

Thanks for the suggestions. "halt" is not accurate based on my context, because the system has not terminated yet. "freeze" is much closer, but I think people usually say an user interface (such as the display) freezes. "Hang" is the most accurate, but I don't know how to use it as a noun. Do you think I can just use "hang" as a noun in this case?
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evergreenMar 13 '11 at 22:58

1

@evergreen: well, if you absolutely insist, yes. Though I would throw in an article just to make sure that the word is parsed as a noun right away. "A crash or a hang". A quick Google search for "causes a hang" suggests that this usage is actually quite common.
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RegDwigнt♦Mar 13 '11 at 23:04

Thanks, @Cerberus. I actually thought about restructuring, but the problem is that there are many places I need to use a noun. Not all of them are in sentences that are easy to restructure. Moreover, I need to use a very accurate word. Maybe I will just use "hanging" then...
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evergreenMar 13 '11 at 23:05